Report of Experimental Results for the International Fire Model Benchmarking and Validation Exercise #3.

Published

December 1, 2005

Author(s)

Anthony P. Hamins, Alexander Maranghides, Erik L. Johnsson, Michelle K. Donnelly, Jiann C. Yang, George W. Mulholland, Robert Anleitner

Abstract

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) are participating in an International Collaborative Fire Model Project (ICFMP) to assess and validate fire computer codes for nuclear power plant applications. This assessment is being conducted through a series of benchmarking and validation exercises. The goal of the present study is to provide data from a large-scale fire test series of a simulated nuclear power plant cable room. The experimental configuration was designed to mimic a cable room including realistic ventilation, a door, an electrical junction box, as well as vertically and horizontally aligned cables and cable trays. The experiments consisted of hydrocarbon spray fires varying from 350 kW to 2 MW in heat release rate burning in a single compartment 7 m wide, 22 m long, and 4 m tall. Information on the values of the fuel flow, measured fuel flow rates, supply and exhaust ventilation flows, ambient conditions and compartment leakage needed to fully specify the boundary conditions for implementation of the fire models are included. The experimental results were composed of 15 tests with more than 370 channels of data. The measurements reported here include the following: * Heat release rates * Compartment pressure * Radiative and total heat flux at various targets in the compartment * Surface and core cable temperatures and a PVC slab temperature * Hot gas layer (HGL) temperature, depth, soot density, and concentrations of oxygen, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide * Gas temperatures * Total heat loss from walls, ceiling, and floor * Total heat loss from the door and mechanical exhaust vent. This report includes a description of the measurement methods and experimental results for Tests conducted as part of the International Fire Model Benchmarking and Validation Exercise #3. The experimental data itself is attached as thirty files, two for each test, which are available electronically to accompany this report. The data can be used as a comparison with fire models as part of the international benchmark exercise.

Citation

Special Publication (NIST SP) - 101

Report Number

101

NIST Pub Series

Special Publication (NIST SP)

Pub Type

NIST Pubs

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Keywords

fire models, validation, large scale fire tests, fuel flow, heat release rate, heat flux, smoke concentration, temperature, vents, doorways, sampling, gas temperature, heat loss, enclosures, nuclear power plants, cables, ventilation

Citation

Hamins, A. , Maranghides, A. , Johnsson, E. , Donnelly, M. , Yang, J. , Mulholland, G. and Anleitner, R. (2005), Report of Experimental Results for the International Fire Model Benchmarking and Validation Exercise #3., Special Publication (NIST SP), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=101387 (Accessed April 26, 2025)